The EMI and BMG mega-music merger could be in the hands of one man: Clive Calder.

The chairman and CEO of Zomba, the largest independent music group in the world with a roster of rockers including Britney Spears, *NSYNC and the Backstreet Boys, could help to satisfy the European regulators by announcing his separation from BMG.

“Clive is the guy with the cards,” said one source familiar with the negotiations. “The merger could be resting in his hands.”

If Calder does separate from BMG, he could also jump into the big leagues and become a major label in his own right.

London-based EMI and Bertelsmann’s music group has met with the European Commission’s competition bureau to discuss how to get a merger through the regulators, sources close to the deal said.

It is believed the commission is still concerned about the threat of collective dominance in the music industry. The European watchdogs are said to be adamant about keeping the number of major music labels at five.

If BMG and EMI were to merge, there would only be four. But if Calder’s Jive Records were to sever its ties with BMG, it could be considered the fifth.

The German music label currently distributes Jive’s recordings in North America and owns 20 percent of the company. But its contract with Jive ends in June. But a BMG-Jive separation alone may not be the whole answer.

One possible scenario calls for EMI to sell part of its business to Zomba. That would help to shrink EMI, boost Jive and please the regulators.

But EMI is weary of breaking up its labels, which include EMI, Virgin, Capitol, Chrysalis and Priority, among others.

EMI withdrew from its planned merger with Warner Music Group because the EU was ready to force the company to sell off Virgin Records. Questions remain over whether Jive can be considered a major label. And if so, does Jive want to get into the U.S. distribution business?

“It’s up to the European Commission and the Federal Trade Commission to define what a major is,” said one label insider.

Jive’s recordings are distributed by EMI in parts of Europe and Latin America but it has no distribution arm in the U.S. – the largest market in the world.

Calder could opt to sign a U.S. distribution pact with either Warner or Sony – or it could go it alone, said one music industry insider.

EMI and Bertelsmann are expected to detail their merger plans early in the new year. But it is still possible the two sides will drop out of the race if it becomes clear the regulators demand too many concessions.